Small Business is Big Business in Tampa Bay

Business is cyclical. So are the types and sizes of businesses, and their business needs. Today’s small businesses in Pinellas County need flexible office space, mobile technology, office suite furniture, presentation equipment, virtual conference rooms and more. The bottom line? Small businesses in cities like Clearwater, St Petersburg and Safety Harbor need everything that larger businesses need. And that signals big business for any company that serves small business customers.

So what exactly is the state of small business in Pinellas County? Look back over the past five or six decades and you’ll see patterns. One decade was dedicated to the rise and fall of the dot com industry… one decade saw big business buying up a large amount of small or privately held businesses. But no matter how good or bad the times have been, small businesses have somehow held it together and have steadily contributed to our economic base in Clearwater, St Petersburg and the rest of Pinellas County. Granted, the past few years have hit small business hard. But the number of sole proprietorships and companies with five or fewer employees are on the rise. And as that number rises, so do small businesses’ needs for commercial office space leases, equipment, transportation and more.

Recently the Gulf Coast Business Review published a map showing the number of private businesses broken out by county within Tampa Bay. It’s interesting to see the difference between Hillsborough and Pinellas County. Keep in mind that Pinellas County is the most densely populated county in the state while being the second smallest.

The numbers are:

It will be interesting to see what the numbers reflect when the 2010 figures are released. No doubt they’ll show that small businesses are an important part of Tampa Bay and entrepreneurism continues to grow despite all odds.